And they lived happily ever after!... or not. Although many people dream of getting married,
the reality is that some pairs split even after their weddings!
And sometimes, the divorce proceedings can get REALLY messy, especially if one of the members
of the couple is a millionaire celebrity Jane Lynch, and there’s no prenuptial agreement.
In her 2011 memoir Happy Accidents, the actress opened up about her past struggles with addiction.
She talked about going through a period of depression where she wanted, in her own words,
"happy oblivion". The star tried to get to that state by drinking
bottles of NyQuil , a medication used to treat symptoms of colds or the flu,
but that can cause addiction if it's not used properly. Lynch decided to turn to cold medicine
because she had vowed to stop drinking at the age of 31, out of fear of becoming an alcoholic.
The actress started drinking when she was a teenager, a time when she also carried a lot of
shame about her sexuality. When talking about her NyQuill addiction, she said in her book:
"I was miserable the whole time. I'd close the drapes, take a swig of NyQuil,
toast with a simple 'bye bye' and go into a deep sleep.'"
Meeting her future wife, Lara Embry,
helped Jane become happier and supported her through her battle with addiction.
Lynch has explained that she felt immediately smitten by Embry even if she had known her for
just a minute. The couple met at a 2009 fundraiser in San Francisco at which Lara was being honored.
Embry is a successful clinical psychologist who has several Master's Degrees from
universities such as Washington or Columbia. She also has a PhD. in clinical psychology.
The actress once confessed to having a picture of the moment they met. How sweet is that? Although
she wasn't very familiar with Lynch's career, she recalled wanting to take a picture with her in an
interview with The New York Times. "I thought she was so cute," the psychologist confessed.
When talking about their relationship, both said that the attraction was immediate and
that they never had a problem with having such different professions.
"It's not like she's marrying out of her species," Lynch joked.
The couple began dating, although their relationship was long distance at first,
since Lynch had to go back to Los Angeles and Embry to Sarasota.
During this time, they discovered that they were "more similar than different."
The lovebirds married on Memorial Day 2010 in an intimate ceremony at the Blue Heron restaurant
in Sunderland, Massachusetts. Although Lynch didn't speak much about the event, Blue-Heron
co-owner Deborah Snow told People magazine: "There were no celebrities or recognizable faces there.
It was small, warm, intimate and very sweet.
You could feel the love and friendship amongst the group." Nineteen people in total were there,
including Lara's daughter Haden, with whom Jane had gotten very close.
At the 2013 Moms Mamarazzi event in New York City, Lynch told People magazine: "My greatest pleasure
is Haden, my stepdaughter. I am surprised how much love you feel and how you would do anything for
your children." However, only 3 months later, she and her wife announced they were getting divorced.
In June of that same year, Jane released a statement to People announcing the end
of her marriage. "Lara and I have decided to end our marriage," she said in the statement.
"This has been a difficult decision for us as we care very deeply about one another.
We ask for privacy as we deal with this family matter."
The actress filed for divorce in July,
stating usual "irreconcilable differences". We still don't know the reason for the breakup,
only that the couple was in the middle of a major remodel of their house when it happened.
And the legal battle began! Lynch and Embry had gotten married without any prenuptial agreements,
meaning they had to turn to legal proceedings to divide their possessions.
They also lived in California, where the law says everything the spouses
contributed to the marriage has to be divided equally, no matter who contributed more.
According to TMZ, in some of the divorce's legal documents, Embry stated that the actress
had earned about two hundred and forty thousand dollars per month for the three years they were
married. The psychologist asked for ninety-three thousand dollars per month in spousal support.
Lara justified it by saying, "her income, investments and assets
increased dramatically with her newfound acting success."
Embry also wanted Lynch to support her new lifestyle,
saying that the star paid for absolutely everything during their marriage.
However, sources explained to TMZ that Jane was already providing support.
In fact, during this time, Lara and her daughter were still living in the house the actress bought.
Their divorce was finalized in October 2014. Lynch agreed to pay her ex 1.2 million dollars over a
two-year period. Embry was also granted half of the residuals received from the actress' work on
Glee, Two and a Half Men, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and any other acting roles Lynch took on during their
marriage. Both women agreed to split the funds from their joint bank account and their 2012 tax
refund. They also decided to sell their Mulholland Tennis Club membership and split the benefits.
However, the psychologist got to keep the Yacht club membership and sole custody of their dog
Francis. Lynch has described herself as an "animal lover", so this must have been a tough blow.
But did the actress get to keep anything? Well, some reports stated she got to keep
two cars: a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid and a 2013 Audi. She also got to keep the house.
One would think after paying such a huge amount of money, that Jane would be angry
at her ex. However, she was set on being friends with Lara. In an interview with Larry King,
the actress said: "We have to remain adults, which we have. We keep everybody's — especially
Haden's — good in our mind.” When she was asked further about the breakup, the star said:
"It's two people who just decided it's better to go apart than stay together."
It seems like both women were successful in remaining amicable,
and they reportedly spent some of their 2013 holidays together.
So, what did Jane do after her divorce? Well, she continued focusing on her career and got bigger
and bigger roles. However, things turned sour when the star fell back into alcoholism in 2017.
At first, she disguised it as a hobby: wine tasting. However, the truth was much more
dangerous than that. "I became a connoisseur of wine in a way that only an alcoholic
can. I went back into denial, after all those years of sobriety and self-knowledge. I fooled
myself," Lynch explained in an interview with the Guardian. The actress confessed to thinking she
had done enough therapy to enjoy a glass of wine with dinner, but she was wrong.
The star also described how she hid her relapse from everyone:
“I'm telling people I'm drinking one glass of wine a night, and I'm drinking five."
When Jane was asked why she fell back into her addiction, she explained that it probably was
because of boredom. "I think I got to a point where nothing was doing it for me anymore."
Luckily for Jane, she was able to recover and even joined Alcoholics Anonymous.
And not only that, but she found love again! This time it was with an old flame: screenwriter
Jennifer Cheyne! Lynch and Cheyne had already dated in the early 2000s, only to break up after
a couple of years. But, two decades later, they reconnected, and Jane seems happier than ever!
"My partner makes me thankful all day long," the actress told People. She also
talked about how much she loves that Jennifer is a practical person who can fix anything at home.
"Although she's very, very feminine and soft, she's got a thing of tools that she brings
out and she can fix almost anything. That's the greatest thing about her,
because I get overwhelmed, and I have no patience with details," the star continued.
Lynch has also talked about the fact that she and Cheyne dated before.
"We fell back together so easily and lovingly," she gushed.
"We're very different people now — we don't have the same insecurities we used to have."
The relationship with Jennifer is going so well that in 2021 the couple got married! The actress
has opened up about how she asked Cheyne to marry her, saying, "We were shopping for insurance for
her and I said, 'Let's just get married.' So that's how romantic it went," the star said.
The couple married in the Santa Barbara courthouse, a beautiful old Spanish building.
"It's a mission building," Lynch explained. "Her son, Harry became a minister with the
Universal Life Church … So he married us. And it was just the three of us out in the
courtyard at the courthouse. And it was lovely." It sure does sound very romantic!
The actress and screenwriter live together and are happier than ever.
After so many struggles, it is great that Jane has finally found peace and happiness!
Here at Rumour Juice, we send our best wishes to the couple.